City Ordinances

Who it applies to

Every non-residential business licensed by the City of Piedmont, its owners, managers, agents and employees, and any person entering those premises. It applies whether or not the business is licensed to sell alcohol.

What it requires

• A licensed non-residential business may not allow patrons, customers, invitees or guests to bring alcoholic beverages onto the premises.
• It is separately unlawful for a person to bring alcoholic beverages onto the premises of a licensed non-residential business.
• Violating the state alcoholic beverage control laws or ABC Board rules (Chapter 28, Code of Alabama 1975) is also a violation of the city chapter.

Exceptions

• Private events. The prohibition does not apply to alcohol brought to a private event, party, banquet, seminar, reception, wedding, reunion, fundraiser or similar occasion that people attend by invitation of the host.

Who it applies to

Any person or registered agent holding a City of Piedmont business license or permit, including convenience stores, gas stations, mobile retailers, specialty outlets, warehouses and wholesalers.

What it requires

• Prohibits manufacturing, marketing, distributing, delivering, bartering, selling, possessing or displaying "non-conforming pharmaceuticals" at any licensed retailer in the city.
• Non-conforming products include anything over 0.3 percent THC on a dry weight basis; anything that violates federal drug law (21 U.S.C. §§ 331 and 355, or § 505 of the Food, Drug & Cosmetic Act); anything that violates Title 20-2-20 through 20-2-32 of the Code of Alabama 1975; drugs designed to mimic controlled substances and impair judgment or coordination; and products packaged or displayed to suggest recreational drug use.
• Delta products may not be labeled, packaged or advertised using the words candy, cake, cupcake or pie, or any brand or variant of those words.
• Delta products may not use trade dress, branding or imagery copied from food products marketed to minors — breakfast cereal, cookies, juice drinks, soft drinks, frozen drinks, ice cream, sorbet, sherbet or frozen pops.
• Delta products may not use characters or symbols that appeal mainly to minors, including superheroes, comic book characters, video game characters, television and movie characters, mythical creatures or unicorns.
• A business found with a suspect product must, at its own expense, submit a sample to the Piedmont Police Department for testing at a city-approved laboratory.
• Prescription medicine and medicine dispensed by a licensed hospital, health care facility or pharmacy are not covered by this ordinance.

Who it applies to

Owners and operators of any dwelling, or part of a dwelling, rented for less than 30 consecutive days, in both residential and non-residential districts. Rentals of 30 consecutive days or more are not covered.

What it requires

• A current STR Business License is required before you offer, advertise or rent a short-term rental. One license per unit, renewed annually, at a fee not to exceed $100 per STR.
• The application must name an emergency contact who answers calls 24 hours a day, seven days a week, responds to complaints within one hour, and can be on site within 12 hours at the City’s request.
• You must carry fire and casualty coverage plus general liability of at least $500,000, on top of homeowner’s insurance, and show proof before the license is issued and again at each renewal.
• Before the license is issued, you must give written notice to the owners of adjoining properties and file a copy with the Business License Division. The notice lists the owner, operator and emergency contact, the code enforcement number for reporting violations, and the unit’s maximum occupancy.
• Maximum occupancy is two persons per bedroom plus two, and the written rental agreement must limit overnight occupancy to that number.
• No on-premises signage that can be read from a public street right-of-way.
• Adequate off-street parking (concrete or asphalt) or on-street parking must cover renters and guests. No recreational vehicle, bus or trailer may be parked on the street.
• The owner or operator may not prepare or serve food to renters, and cooking facilities are not allowed in bedrooms. Licensed Bed and Breakfast Homes are exempt from this provision.
• A copy of the license, the emergency contact information and the house rules must be posted in a conspicuous place inside the unit.
• The structure must look and function like a typical home in its neighborhood. Anything that does not goes to the Zoning Board for case-by-case review before a license can be issued.
• Existing and new operators have 30 calendar days from the ordinance’s effective date to get licensed.